Tuesday, April 03, 2007
From AscensionNYC
Tuesday in Holy Week
Psalm 71:1-12
Isaiah 49:1-6
1 Corinthians 1:18-31
John 12:37-38,42-50
When I received my Lenten Devotional assignment, I Googled the selected scripture readings for the day to see what sort of results I would receive. As always with a Google search, I received numerous options for the Bible passages, and having clicked on a few of my choices to see what different versions exist, I realized they were all pretty similar. Even though the text or word choice was different from one version to another, the overall message was the same regardless of which site I worked from.
One site in particular caught my eye as it had a header at the beginning of the Gospel lesson which read "The Jews Continued in Their Unbelief." This was not surprising in itself as today's Gospel lesson talks directly of the lack of belief in Jesus and the miracles he had performed. No mixed message here — a straightforward passage of the continued denial of Jesus as the Messiah. The significance of that header for me as I read the lesson was my own concept of "unbelief" and how I may fall into the same practice.
"Ned Continues in his Unbelief" — I am certainly not suggesting that I do not believe Jesus Christ is my personal Lord and Savior. I do. However, I wonder just how often I show my disbelief by allowing my day to day life, my own fears and concerns, to affect my faith. And as such, how much do I show the potential for disbelief in Jesus.
As we continue in our journey through Lent and now into Holy Week, where the people's unbelief was most greatly shown, it is important for the remembrance of Jesus to put our faith and trust in him. And to do all we can to eliminate our own unbelief.
Do I continue in my unbelief? There will always be times when I am feeling at my lowest and I think I have nowhere to turn. But remembering that Jesus, who not only died for my sins and the sins of the world, is just a prayer away, strengthens my belief and allows me to continue on, knowing that my lord and savior is always with me.
Isaiah 49:1-6
1 Corinthians 1:18-31
John 12:37-38,42-50
One site in particular caught my eye as it had a header at the beginning of the Gospel lesson which read "The Jews Continued in Their Unbelief." This was not surprising in itself as today's Gospel lesson talks directly of the lack of belief in Jesus and the miracles he had performed. No mixed message here — a straightforward passage of the continued denial of Jesus as the Messiah. The significance of that header for me as I read the lesson was my own concept of "unbelief" and how I may fall into the same practice.
"Ned Continues in his Unbelief" — I am certainly not suggesting that I do not believe Jesus Christ is my personal Lord and Savior. I do. However, I wonder just how often I show my disbelief by allowing my day to day life, my own fears and concerns, to affect my faith. And as such, how much do I show the potential for disbelief in Jesus.
As we continue in our journey through Lent and now into Holy Week, where the people's unbelief was most greatly shown, it is important for the remembrance of Jesus to put our faith and trust in him. And to do all we can to eliminate our own unbelief.
Do I continue in my unbelief? There will always be times when I am feeling at my lowest and I think I have nowhere to turn. But remembering that Jesus, who not only died for my sins and the sins of the world, is just a prayer away, strengthens my belief and allows me to continue on, knowing that my lord and savior is always with me.
Ned Fitch
